On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Potomac Mills is more historic than 7% of U.S. towns, #198 of 253 in Virginia. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Potomac Mills’ overall grade.
Virginia towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Virginia town has 3.6 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Potomac Mills’ 0.0 sits below most of its state (17% of Virginia towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±1.2 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Potomac Mills’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone
Another post office, Agnewville, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Hamlets and corners on the map
AgnewvilleBethelElm Farm Mobile Home ParkGleatons Mobile Home Park
Gone or out of use
Bethel Schoolschool
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Potomac Mills, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Potomac Mills yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Potomac Mills is a census-designated place in Prince William County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2010 Census was 5,614. It consists of the Potomac Mills mall and surrounding residential and commercial area, adjoining Dale City and Lake Ridge. Potomac Mills largely overlaps with the unincorporated community of Bethel.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 5,614 to 6,332 (+13%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Potomac Mills, 1891 to 1927
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Potomac Mills. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1927Quantico sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Potomac Mills.
Famous people
Famous people close to Potomac Mills
Nobody well known was born in Potomac Mills itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Potomac Mills is more historic than 7% of U.S. towns, #198 of 253 in Virginia. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
How old are the homes in Potomac Mills?
1% of Potomac Mills’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.2 points), against a typical 1.9% for a Virginia town; the median home was built in 1988.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
